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UNITED STATES PATENT Orricn,

Lnvrc. STRONG, or cnnnnrtntn, ll'IASSAQHUSETTS, Assioiion ro ALBANY AGRICULTURAL COMPANY, or ALBANY, NEW YORK.

ANiMAn-PovvER.

EPECIFICATIONforming part of Letters Patent No. 291,640, dated January 8, 1884:.

Application filed November 24, let-'3. (N model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LEVI C. STRONG, acitizen of the United States, residing at Greenfield, in the county of Franklin and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Animal-Powers, (for which I filed a previous application July 11, 1881,) of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the ac companying drawings, in which Figure l is a perspective of an animal-power constructed in accordance with my invention, and Fig. 2 is a detail, hereinafter described.

Like letters refer to like parts in both figures. i

This invention relates to that class of machines known as horse-powers or animal-powers, and to that portion of such class which involves an endless tread, upon which a horse, dog, sheep, or other animal walks, and thus gives motion to the endless tread, which mo- I tion is conveyed by suitable means to any desired mechanism for the operation thereof.

The novel features of the machine herein described and shown will be specifically set forth in the claims.

In the drawings, A represents a main framework, provided at its front end with suitable boxes or bearings, B, for the shaft of any ordinary and suitable driving-pulleys, O, which support and are driven by the endless tread D; To said shaft is rigidly secured a crank, E, slotted for the adjustable connection therewith of a pitman, F, which at its opposite end is pivotally secured to the vibrating bar or lever G.

As thus far described the parts mentionedthat is to say, the main frame, driving-pulleys, crank, and pitman-may be of any ordinary construction.

The following pulleys G and the supporting-pulleys C are supported or journaled in a secondary frame, H, connected at its front end pivotal1yin this instance by brackets h -to the front end of the main frame A, and at its rear end by a cam or cams. I, secured to a shaft, J, which is provided with a rigidlymounted arm or lever, K, which traverses a Sector, L, secured to the main frame, said shaft J also being sui ably journaled in said main frame, whereby the cam or cams I, being in direct contact with the side rails of the secondary frame, serve as its sole support at the rear end thereof, and as means which permit The endless tread D (shown in part by dot- 6o ted lines, Fig. l) is composed of lags d cl (see I Fig. 2, which is an inverted plan or bottom view) and links M M. Each of the links comprises a web or strap, m, having hinge-lugs m,

and projecting stops of, having lateral or inwardly-projecting ledges or clamping-jaws m The hinge-lugs m of the link M are provided with pintles m, while those of the link M are v bored to receive pintles, and the web of the former link is provided with points or spurs of, while theweb of the latter isrecessed or bored for a screw or bolt, as m.

The lags and links are put together in the following manner: The link M is driven on the end of onelag until it is flush. The link M is in like manner put upon a second lag, the pintle of the first link entering the hinge-lug of the second, when the screw of bolt m is driven into the second lag. It will now be seen that the points or spurs of the link M will So prevent either link from moving inward upon the lags, and that the screw m prevents either link from moving outward thereupon by reason of the spurs, the screw or bolt, and the hinge-joint between the two links. ing thisconstruction at each end of the lags an cl employing suitably flanged and sproeketed driving and following pulleys, it will be seen that cheapness, strength, and serviceability are secured in the endless tread. bar-or lever G is adapted at its free end g for connection with desired machinery, as heretofore; but the opposite end of said bar or lever is not, as heretofore, pivoted directly to the Duplicat- The vibrating 0 main frame, the object being to avoid and over- 5 come the movement in a curved path of said free end of the bar. The pitmanF is pivotally connected to the bar at f. The rearendofthe ly the employment of the links N and 0,

relatively arranged as shown, when the crank E is moved upward to its full throw, the pitman raises the free end of the bar, the link 0 raises and carries forward the middle portion thereof, while the link N carries the rear end thereof slightly downward and forward, so that the resultant vertical movement ofthe free end is in a substantially straight line.

/ As before stated. the main frame may be of any desired well-known construction, and so, also, any part or combination of parts may be changed in construction, proportion, and relative arrangement to any extent within the skill of persons conversant in the construction of this class of n'iachinery, and I therefore do not limit myself to the exact details herein shown and described.

Having described my invention and its operation, what I claim as new is 1. In an animal-power, the combination of a main frame supporting a driving-pulley, a secondary frame supporting a following pulley, an endless tread, and a cam or cams journaled in the main frame and bearing directly upon or against said secondary frame, substantially as specified.

' 2. The vibrating bar of an animal-power, connected by suitable means to the crank of a driving-pulley, in combination with two links pivotally connected to said bar and to the main frame, one of s tld links being pivoted to said frame above and the other below said bar, substantially as specified.

3. The combination of a series of lags with a series of links alternately provided with webs having spurs and hinge-lugs, and with webs having similar hinge-lugs and a screw hole or recess, substantially as specified.

4. The combination of the bar G and the links N O, the frame A, pitman F, and a driving-pulley having a crank, E, substantially as specified.

5. The combination of the endless tread D, pulley O, crank E, pitman F, bar G, supported by the hanging link N, and the link 0, substantially as specified.

6. The combination of the main frame A, the secondary frame H, pivoted to the main frame, and carrying the following pulley O,

with the shaft J. cam 1, arm K, and sector L, I

LEVI C. STRONG.

XVi tn esses:

ELLA G. WrLLIA s, GRACE D. WrLLIAMs. 

